5th avenue

Do you ever look on designer websites and feel your heart sink as you realize that a $5,000 pair of shoes being sold out means there are enough people out there to afford that item?  Well, I experienced that a lot today - but it was exciting.  I explored 5th and Madison today in Manhattan, where many designer flagship stores are located (Oscar de la Renta, Prada, and Chanel to name a few) and it was quite an experience.  Did you know these stores have guards to open the door for you while maintaining watch over the whole store?  They are very intimidating - makes me feel guilty for looking around and touching.

But regardless, I looked around and touched, a lot.  First stop was J Crew Bridal (which has more than just bridal).  And oh goodness, everything in this store was divine.  Wouldn't it have been funny to find the gown I made a version of?  I didn't, but the gowns I did see were simply beautiful.  The store also has many jeweled belts, shoes, bridesmaids dresses (that you could wear again, but really), shorts, and sweaters.  I was not allowed to take pictures here so I simply observed.  It was interesting to view this price bracket for bridal customers - to me, personally, the things in that store were very high end ($300 for a pair of silk shorts, thousands for dresses).  Yet in parts of the bridal industry, J Crew Bridal may be considered lower end or in a more affordable bracket for the non-designer customer, and the quality is quite different.  None-the-less, I thought they were perfect.  There was one navy and black silver-beaded dress that was just divine.

Next I hopped across the street to Oscar de la Renta.  Again I could not take pictures (but I snuck one).  Inside was a woman trying on a long mermaid gown in white with red and green flowers.  Another woman was buying accessories like they cost nothing.  I creeped around to the room in the back with all the long dresses and stole a couple shots of a beautiful beaded pale pink gown.  The garments in the store were from the Spring 2011 RTW collection.

 On the runway!

Afterwards, I noticed J Mendel across the street and wandered over there.  As one of my favorite bridal designers, I thought it necessary to look at their boutique.  Their hours were late, so I couldn't go inside, but I did manage to get a few shots of their window display.

Bergdorf Goodman is a wonderful way to see a bunch of designer garments and collections in one spot - so that was my final stop.  Among the designers represented were Alaia, the Row, Vera Wang, and Marni.

 I KNOW.  My life is now complete.  (The colors were so amazing in real life - trying to sneak a picture means bad lighting and photo quality!)

 Gorgeous detailing from The Row.  This is where my friend Megan is interning for the summer!

Terrible photo but beautiful gown from Vera Wang.

 

I also bought a clutch in BCBG Max Azria (I don't own one - now I do!) during which a piece of construction equipment fell onto a display window and the whole thing crumbled to pieces. 

 

This one here, but in a fun print!

Happy Friday everyone!

to share, issue #001

I'm gonna start something new on here; it's something I've seen other blogs or websites do and I think it's a nice idea: at the end of each week, give a little summary of some cool news you saw, something you learned, or just something going on. It's a nice way to show you things I've read about but didn't have enough material to post on, or to make the blog more personable. This may not always be fashion-related. So let's go!

To show you: New York Fashion Week for Fall 2011 is underway! There are already some great things going down the runway - Doo.Ri showed us how beautiful grays can be, in luxurious draped jerseys and wool tailored coats; Rebecca Minkoff sent down some fabulous textures (and furs, and prints ...); and Threeasfour did some fascinatingly unusual garments you just have to see for yourself!

To tell you: I will be doing a graduation dress for one of my sister's classmates! My sister, in addition, will be wearing a dress I made and wore myself for my high school graduation - the infinity dress. You can tie it probably twenty different ways, and so even though it will be the same gown, you won't even know it is. The gown I'm doing for her classmate is literally going to be a copy of a bridal gown from the J Crew Collection - which runs for close to $900,00. I will be working on the sloper and first rough pattern tonight! I am very excited to do this - the fact that someone came to me and asked me to make this for them was incredibly flattering, and I couldn't be more honored. I will be fitting her throughout the process in a fully-functioning muslin before I begin the final-fabric version (which isn't needed until the end of May, to play it on the safe side - but it will be done before then). More updates to come!

To acquaint you: I bought a raw food cookbook today! I read the entire thing this afternoon with the sunshine pouring in through the window. I am not interested in going raw - I simply think the techniques to create interesting flavors and recreate every day dishes are fascinating! If you aren't familiar, raw eating is a vegan diet that goes a step further by keeping all foods raw (or cooked below 104 degrees). The belief is that fruits, nuts and vegetables maintain their highest nutrient levels when raw, or until meeting 104 degree heat, when the nutrients begin to fade slightly from cooking. All recipes are strictly fruit, nut and vegetable based, then. And you guessed it, the desserts are thus good for you (and you can eat chocolate - you simply use the raw cacao bean or cocoa nib instead, with something to sweeten it). You aren't confined to just eating apples and oranges and cashews plain though - there are recipes for "pasta" using zucchini ribbons and a pesto made from parsley, walnuts, avocado, sun-dried tomato, and lemon, for example - which sounds delicious. I find this all very interesting - as an inspiration, rather than a lifestyle, for me personally. What do you think of raw food? Are there any food-related things that you'd like to share?

And of course I didn't forget my promise to never have an all-words post. I love to look at designer sketches - the different styles, how they translate into real garments - their personality really comes through. Rather conversely, I don't recall who drew these - and the signature doesn't help.

Have a good weekend everyone!